Course Descriptions

The following is a complete listing of courses offered at MCC. You can also visit our Programs of Study page for a list of course requirements necessary to complete your degree.

Please note: Special Studies is a general heading for experimental courses or those for which the demand is untested, unknown, immediate, or temporary. You can visit our Special Studies page for a list of Special Studies courses.

Click on the arrow to view a list of course descriptions for each program.

AAD - Applied Art and Design

ACC - Accounting

ACD - Alcohol/Chemical Dependency

AGS - Agricultural Studies

ANT - Anthropology

ARA - Arabic/Foreign Language

ART - Art

ASL - American Sign Language/Foreign Language

ATP - Automotive Technology

BIO - Biology

BUS - Business

CDL - Interdisciplinary

CE - Cooperative Education

CE - Hospitality

CE - Interior Design

CE - Office Technology

CEL - Leadership

CHE - Chemistry

CHI - Chinese/Foreign Language

CIN - Cinema Studies

Cinema Studies

CIS - Computer Information Systems

CIS - Information and Computer Technologies

CIT - Civil and Construction Technology

CLT - Clinical Laboratory Technician/Medical Laboratory Technician

COM - Communication

COS - College Success

CPT - Computer Technology

CRC - Computer Related Curricula

CRJ - Criminal Justice

CSC - Computer Science

DAS - Dental Assisting

DEN - Dental Hygiene

EBL - Experiential and Adult Learning

ECE - Education and Early Care

ECO - Economics

EDU - Education

ELT - Electrical Engineering Technology/Electronics

EMS - Emergency Medical Services

ENG - English Literature

ENG 105 - Introduction to Literature
An introduction to reading and analyzing these primary genres of literature: fiction, poetry, and drama. The course may also include creative nonfiction. Students will respond critically to readings of different historical and cultural contexts through class discussion and written work. These contexts may include different world views, politics, classes, ethnicity, races, genders, and sexual orientations. (SUNY-H). 3 Credits.

Waiver of Accuplacer Reading and sentence level tests; score of 71 or higher on reading test and 82 or higher on sentence level test; or completion of TRS 200 with a C or better; or completion of TRS 105 with a C or higher; or completion of ESL 201 with a C or higher; or ENG 101 with a C or higher.

ENG 106 - Literary Focus
An introduction to reading and analyzing literature of special interest. The offerings vary each semester, but all focus on important themes and sub-genres in literature. Students will respond critically to fiction, poetry, and drama of different contexts through class discussion and written work. These contexts may include different world views, politics, classes, ethnicity, races, genders, and sexual orientations. Please see the Department’s webpage for current offerings. Three class hours. (SUNY-H). 3 Credits.

Waiver of Accuplacer Reading and sentence level tests; score of 71 or higher on reading test and 82 or higher on sentence level test; or completion of TRS 200 with a C or better; or completion of TRS 105 with a C or higher; or completion of ESL 201 with a C or higher; or ENG 101 with a C or higher.

ENG 108 - Literature of the Holocaust
A study of the Holocaust through a variety of genres, including poetry, novels, short stories, plays, memoirs, and children’s literature, in order to gain a better understanding of the ideas presented by the Holocaust as a significant event in world history. Students will study the origins and development of the Holocaust and its political, cultural, economic, and social implications through the lenses of a variety of writers. (SUNY-H). 3 Credits.

Waiver of Accuplacer Reading and sentence level tests; score of 71 or higher on reading test and 82 or higher on sentence level test; or completion of TRS 200 with a C or better; or completion of TRS 105 with a C or higher; or completion of ESL 201 with a C or higher or ENG 101 with a C or higher.

ENG 109 - Detective Fiction
Students will read classic and contemporary short stories and novels in sub-genres including golden age, hard-boiled, and police procedural by such authors as Christie, Chandler, Conan Doyle, and Grafton. Students will study the origins and development of genre as a vehicle to examine historical, social, political, intellectual, and cultural contexts. (SUNY-H) . 3 Credits.

Waiver of Accuplacer Reading and sentence level tests; score of 71 or higher on reading test and 82 or higher on sentence level test; or completion of TRS 200 with a C or better; or completion of TRS 105 with a C or higher; or completion of ESL 201 with a C or higher; or ENG 101 with a C or higher.

ENG 114 - The Young Adult Novel
The course will use various critical literary approaches to explore novels from the first Golden Age of children’s literature to its contemporary incarnation in the 21st century as a way to consider the transformation from child to adult and the global socio-cultural concept of the young adult. A variety of subgenres such as Realistic/Historical Fiction, Fantastic/Speculative Fiction, Mystery/Detective, Romance and Creative Nonfiction will be covered with attention given to motifs, archetypes, and themes in such literature. While the course will emphasize the traditional novel, the dominant genre in YA literature, additional genres such as the graphic novel, poetry, drama, and non-fiction will also be explored to properly contextualize the novel within Young Adult Literature as a whole. This course will center on written texts but may also include occasional references to films and other media. (SUNY-H). 3 Credits.

Waiver of Accuplacer Reading and sentence level tests; score of 71 or higher on reading test and 82 or higher on sentence level test; or completion of TRS 200 with a C or better; or completion of TRS 105 with a C or higher; or completion of ESL 201 with a C or higher; or ENG 101 with a C or higher.

ENG 115 - Fantasy Literature
An exploration of classic, modern and contemporary Fantasy Literature including reading, discussion and written analysis. Various subgenres such as High Fantasy, Magical Realism, Urban Fantasy and Mythic Fantasy will be explored by applying critical, social and historical context and analysis. Attention will be given to motifs, archetypes, themes and key figures/authors. This course will center on written text with occasional references to Fantasy in films and other media. (SUNY-H). 3 Credits.

Waiver of Accuplacer Reading and sentence level tests; score of 71 or higher on reading test and 82 or higher on sentence level test; or completion of TRS 200 with a C or better; or completion of TRS 105 with a C or higher; or completion of ESL 201 with a C or higher; or ENG 101 with a C or higher.

ENG 201 - Early British Literature
A survey of British literature from the early middle ages to the late eighteenth-century. Possible authors studied include Chaucer, Milton, Shakespeare, and Defoe. (SUNY-H) 3 Credits.

English 101 with a C or better, or placement into English 200, or instructor permission.

ENG 202 - Modern British Literature
A survey of British literature from the late 18th Century to the present. Focus moves from romantic optimism and the belief in progress to the disillusionment produced by industrialism and global war. Three class hours. (SUNY-H) . 3 Credits.

English 101 with a C or better, or placement into English 200, or instructor permission.

ENG 203 - American Literature to 1865
A survey of American literature from the celebration of the new land in the Colonial Period to the Civil War. Readings and discussion focus on writers such as Franklin, Hawthorne, Poe, Emerson, Thoreau, Melville, Whitman, and Dickinson. Fall semester only. Three class hours. (SUNY-H) 3 Credits.

English 101 with a C or better, placement into English 200, or instructor permission.

ENG 204 - American Literature Since 1865
A survey of American literature from the Civil War to the present, focusing on the changing values of an increasingly technological society. Includes the major literary philosophies of the time through writers such as Crane, Hemingway, Faulkner, Baraka, and O'Connor. Three class hours. (SUNY-H) 3 Credits.

English 101 with a C or better, placement into English 200, or instructor permission.

ENG 208 - Literature of the Bible
A study of the rich literary heritage found in both Hebrew and Christian scripture. The course focuses on such types as: saga, short story, poetry, gospel narrative and apocalyptic writings. Themes include the human struggle to understand the Divine and the nature of good and evil. Three class hours. (SUNY-H) 3 Credits.

English 101 with a C or better, placement into English 200, or instructor permission.

English 101 with a C or better, placement into English 200, or instructor permission.

ENG 214 - The Short Story
A study of the development of the short story as a distinctive literary form. Includes writers such as Chekhov, Poe, Hemingway, Updike, Carver, O'Connor and Barthelme. Three class hours. (SUNY-H) 3 Credits.

English 101 with a C or better, or placement into English 200, or instructor permission.

ENG 215 - Children's Literature
A survey of classic and contemporary children's works from Aesop to Rowling. Students will analyze a variety of different genres such as fables, poems, myths, fairy tales, picture books, and novels with themes such as evil, escape, individuality, and the demands of society. Critical approaches such as historical, psychological, feminist, and Marxist theories may be discussed and applied to texts. Three class hours. (SUNY-H). Three credits. 3 Credits.

ENG 101 with a C or better, or placement into ENG 200, or instructor permission.

ENG 216 - American Minorities in Literature
A study of authors whose literature provides a minority view of American life. Includes authors of African-American, Native American, Latino and Asian heritage, such as Hughes, Giovanni, Momaday, Storm, Thomas, Pereda, Yutang, Mori. Three class hours. (SUNY-H) 3 Credits.

English 101 with a C or better, or placement into English 200, or instructor permission.

ENG 217 - Women in Literature
Literature in which the roles of women are significant and help explain contemporary attitudes. The works for reading and discussion are selected from many cultures, and cover the period from Biblical to modern times. Three class hours. (SUNY-H) 3 Credits.

English 101 with a C or better, or placement into English 200, or instructor permission.

ENG 218 - Introduction to Shakespeare
Reading, discussion, and written analysis of several major plays and some of the sonnets. The course explores Shakespeare’s challenging language and the memorably rendered characters that populate his works, including kings, queens, lovers, shrews and fools. Themes such as power, revenge, love, jealousy, ambition and betrayal will be discussed. Critical approaches including psychological, feminist, and historical theories may be presented and applied to the texts. Three class hours. (SUNY-H) 3 Credits.

English 101 with a C or better, or placement into English 200, or instructor permission.

ENG 220 - Introduction to Dramatic Literature
A survey of drama from the ancient Greeks to the end of the 20th century, with emphasis on dramatic structure and style. The readings may include international writers such as Aristophanes, Marlowe, Goldsmith, Ibsen, O'Neill, Fugard and Childress. Three class hours. (SUNY-H) 3 Credits.

English 101 with a C or better, or placement into English 200, or instructor permission.

ENG 223 - Science Fiction
Reading, discussion, and written analysis of speculative fiction novels and short stories about human beings experiencing the changes resulting from science and technology. Representative authors from Shelley and Wells, through Clarke and Heinlein, to LeGuin and Delany. Three class hours. (SUNY-H) 3 Credits.

English 101 with a C or better, or placement into English 200, or instructor permission.

ENG 224 - Literature of Horror
Students will read classic, modern, and contemporary short stories and novels, with an emphasis on the historical development of the genre. Attention will be given to supernatural, psychological, and allegorical themes and tropes in such fiction, as well as relevant social and historical background information. The course will center on written fiction, with occasional reference to horror in films and other media. Three class hours. (SUNY-H) 3 Credits.

English 101 with a C or better, or placement into English 200, or instructor permission.

ENG 225 - Contemporary Poetry
A study of major poetry from 1940 through the 1990s. Emphasis is on technique and language, form and content. Selections are from poets as diverse as Frost and Ginsberg, Clifton and Rich, Plath and Cummings. Three class hours. (SUNY-H) 3 Credits.

English 101 with a C or better, or placement into English 200, or instructor permission.

English 101 with a C or better, or placement into English 200, or instructor permission.

ENG 240 - Reading Popular Culture
A literature course that examines the theories of, approaches to, and topics within popular culture that have been or are the conditions for social change. Utilizing short stories, poetry, novels, and dramatic literature, students will consider the impact of pop art, film, radio, television, advertising, comics, fads and fashion, and everyday culture on the human condition. (SUNY-H) 3 Credits.

English 101 with a C or better, or placement into English 200, or instructor permission.